News

Central City Brewers + Distillers is pleased to announce that its Queensborough Gin has won Gold at the 2016 San Diego Spirits Competition, in the Gin category. This comes shortly after winning another Gold medal at the 2016 Spirits International Prestige Awards earlier this year.

Queensborough Gin is created by Central City’s award-winning head distiller Stuart McKinnon, who has a distinct passion for gin.

“Winning two international gold awards when we literally just launched is a testament to Central City’s dedication to making premium, high quality, products made with the best ingredients possible,” says Stuart McKinnon, head distiller at Central City Brewers + Distillers. “We’re proud to expand Central City’s reputation as not only one of the best brewers in the country, but now also one Canada’s best distillers.”

Queensborough Gin is a premium, handcrafted small batch dry gin, rooted in a 17th century traditional London Dry recipe with a modern day Canadian twist. Queensborough Gin is a toast to blending traditional high quality distilling methods with the best local ingredients possible.

Its taste profile includes citrus notes from uniquely fragrant Mountain Juniper berries from BC’s interior rocky hillsides and the highly aromatic Spruce tips from Vancouver Island. The nose offers a pleasant floral scent, and the first taste has clear pine, rosemary, jasmine and cassia notes.

The 2016 San Diego International Spirits Competition had entries from the USA and internationally, and all spirits were judged on their individual merits and attributes. The 2016 bottle judging competition was well supported with 128 entries in various categories from vodka and gin to whiskeys, rum, agave spirits and liqueurs and packaged cocktails. The awards were held at the San Diego Spirits Festival, a major cocktail, culinary and cultural extravaganza celebrated annually each summer on San Diego Bay.